‘队列’ (duì liè) literally combines ‘队’ (duì), meaning ‘team’ or ‘group’, and ‘列’ (liè), meaning ‘row’ or ‘line’. Together, they refer to an organized line of people or things—especially one formed for order, discipline, or movement, such as in military drills, school assemblies, or public queues. It emphasizes alignment and structure rather than just casual waiting.

This term is commonly used in formal or institutional settings: physical education classes, military training, school morning assemblies, or even computing (e.g., ‘queue’ in programming, borrowed from English but written as 队列). While it can overlap with ‘排队’ (duì pái, ‘to queue up’), 队列 specifically denotes the *formed line itself*, not the act of joining it. It often appears in compounds like ‘队列训练’ (duì liè xùn liàn, ‘formation drill’) or paired with 伍 as ‘队伍’ (duì wu, ‘troop’ or ‘group’).